


The Simmering Series

by Warp5Complex_Archivist



Category: Star Trek: Enterprise
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2006-02-27
Updated: 2006-02-26
Packaged: 2018-08-16 07:23:12
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 20,985
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8093305
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Warp5Complex_Archivist/pseuds/Warp5Complex_Archivist
Summary: First time fic. Malcolm and Trip go off on a little adventure, and discover each other. (04/07/2003)





	1. Chapter 1. Simmering

**Author's Note:**

> Note from Kylie Lee, the archivist: this story was originally archived at [Warp 5 Complex](http://fanlore.org/wiki/Warp_5_Complex), the software of which ceased to be maintained and created a security hazard. To make future maintenance and archive growth easier, I began importing its works to the AO3 as an Open Doors-approved project in August 2016. I e-mailed all creators about the move and posted announcements, but I may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact me using the e-mail address on [Warp 5 Complex collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/Warp5Complex).

  
Author's notes: Thank you to my beloved betas, Kylie and Kim, to whom I owe all commas, continuity, and correct verb tenses.   


* * *

He showed up at my door that morning. I knew it was him. It's something about the way he rings my chime.

I opened the door and grinned at him. Couldn't help myself. "C'mon in, Lieutenant," I said. "What can I do for you?" I pulled my coverall up, somehow managing to get my sleeves bunched up under it.

Malcolm entered my quarters, looked around curiously, and then waved a padd at me. "I went over your proposed upgrades for the alert system, as requested, sir."

"I only gave that to you last night, Malcolm. Mighty efficient of you. What'd you think?" I hunted for my shoes, finding one under the desk. And wondered how Malcolm could be so formal at this hour of the morning. I felt a slight caffeine headache coming on. Or maybe it was just Malcolm getting me all stirred up.

"Excellent plan," he said. "Meets my approval."

"Glad to hear it."

He was in his standard Malcolm stance, as I call it. At ease, legs slightly spread, one arm behind his back, the other holding the padd. "I had a few minor changes regarding the phase cannon back-up system. And," he paused, pursing his lips and giving a little sniff, "I made a few grammatical revisions. Are you aware that you ended most of your sentences with a preposition? What do they teach you in those bloody American schools?" he finished with a weary sigh.

"Malcolm--" I started. I had half a mind to drop down to my knees and show him exactly what I learned in those bloody American schools. It would wipe that snide, superior look right off his face. But I only said, "Malcolm, I'm sure the cap'n's gonna appreciate that." I plucked the padd from his hands. "Listen, I'm starvin' and I haven't had my coffee yet. Let's take a look at this over breakfast, okay?"

"Very well, sir." Like he hadn't just insulted me.

I spotted my other shoe across the room, and in a moment we were out the door. We walked shoulder to shoulder down the corridor, to the lift. It was crowded this time of morning, with sleepy crewmembers still rubbing the sleep out of their eyes, and the third shift crew heading back to their quarters. As Malcolm stepped past me, his ass brushed against my hip.

"Pardon me, sir," he murmured, glancing at me from under his lashes.

I told myself it was just an accident.

***

After we finished eating, I leaned back in my chair, tilting it back as I clasped my hands behind my head. "Looks good, Malcolm. I'll pass it along to the cap'n before we go off on that survey."

The proposal did look good. Malcolm's suggestions were right on the money, and well, he did polish up my sentences real nice.

Malcolm nodded to me over his mug.

I regarded him for a minute. He could be such a little snot sometimes. But he was a bright and capable officer. And my heart beat faster whenever he was around, as if I were more alive than when he wasn't there. So I brought my weight forward in the chair with a little thump to get his attention. "Good job, Lieutenant," I said, with all sincerity.

Malcolm's eyes widened a bit. He looked both pleased and uncomfortable. He carefully placed his mug down and clasped his hands. "Why, thank you, sir. I'm looking forward to getting started."

The guy was actually flustered.

"As long as the cap'n approves, we can get started when I return tomorrow." I looked up. "Oh, Cap'n, there you are--" Speak of the devil.

Jonathan came to our table, looking pale and a little unsteady. "Trip--" He stopped, coughing violently.

Malcolm and I both jumped up, and Malcolm guided him to a chair. Malcolm offered him his tea, and the captain took a few careful swallows. "Thank you, Malcolm," he croaked.

"Cap'n, why do I get the feelin' you're not gonna be doin' the survey with me?" I asked. "An' shouldn't you be in Sickbay?" If he was blowing the doc off, I was going to have something to say about it.

"I'm on my way back from there. And heading straight to my quarters," he added hurriedly, seeing the look on my face. "Enolian flu. Doc says I'll be fine as soon as the medication kicks in. Meanwhile--" He started coughing again.

"How 'bout Malcolm and I do that survey?" I suggested.

He finally stopped coughing, his face red. He didn't speak, but just nodded at me and pointed.

"In the meanwhile, I have a little light readin' for ya." I handed him the padd. "Now let's get you back home so you can get some sleep."

As we escorted our captain to his quarters, I entertained pointless, romantic thoughts about spending twenty-four hours in a shuttle with Malcolm. I can be a damn fool about guys sometimes.

***

"I should be evaluating the relays for the back-up system," Malcolm informed me sourly.

"You'd rather be doin' that than exploring?" I asked.

"I'd feel more comfortable exploring if I knew our tactical alert system was working at its highest efficiency. Sir."

That was Malcolm in a nutshell. All tactics and efficiency. And discipline. Military discipline. Which, as he once pointed out to me, I was sorely lacking. Sure, we weren't exactly in our right minds because of that singularity. I still can't believe I got so wound up about that goddamn chair. Captain still teases me. But that was nothing compared to Malcolm. He was a real bastard. When he started snarling about having me taken out and shot something in me just snapped. I remember lunging at him and it felt so damn good when our bodies collided that I wasn't pissed anymore. I just wanted him real bad.

I could feel my cock filling as I thought about it. Malcolm, all sweaty and breathless, shoving me down. Sometimes, alone in my bed late at night I think about what might have happened if the captain hadn't pulled us apart.

"Commander--"

Malcolm's voice snapped me back to the present.

"I'm getting an anomalous energy reading from the surface."

I was at the console in a flash. "Oh, yeah, now that's--wait, damn, it's gone." Strange. Our long-range scans back on the Enterprise should have picked that up. The planet was supposed to be uninhabited. "Did you get the location?"

Malcolm was shaking his head. "No. Maybe. Wait--I've got it narrowed down to a 5-kilometer area. Right...here, on the main continent. Near the equator."

I considered our options, feeling a prickle of excitement, the thrill of the unknown deep in my belly. "Let's go check it out, Lieutenant. Set a course."

Malcolm regarded me coolly for a long moment. "Do you think that's wise, sir?"

I couldn't help but grin at him. "C'mon, we'll just go down there, take a quick look around then report back to Enterprise."

He looked out at the Class M planet looming in our viewscreen, then nodded. Just like he did on that spooky repair station, when I coaxed him into crawling into the air duct with me. And on that amazing ship, when he followed me down that ladder into part of the ship that just shouldn't have been there. Sometimes, I get the feeling that he'll follow me anywhere.

***

We landed in a hell of a storm, but Malcolm was steady at the controls, and we touched down with only a little bit of a bump. I complimented him on it and I swear he looked suspicious.

We set ourselves down in a rainforest. Even though it was raining hard, I couldn't resist taking a peek. We were the first humans ever to be on that planet, and I don't think I'll ever get over how great that feels. So I opened the door and got a face full of hot, wet air. Despite the steady rain there was a heavy, sweet smell, the kind that can make you feel queasy. I saw low, greenish clouds, and weird, tall, skinny trees rustling in the wind, like they were whispering to me. Then the wind shifted and the rain was stinging my face.

"How 'bout we wait till the rain stops?" I suggested to Malcolm, blinking and wiping at my face.

"Good idea." Malcolm frowned at the less-than-welcoming surroundings. "Rather messy out there right now."

I pulled the door shut. "Yeah, and I didn't get a chance to install any showers in the shuttle," I couldn't resist adding. "You know, Southern boys and indoor plumbing..." Not very mature of me, I know. It's been a couple of months but his bitching about the lack of showers in the nacelles still irritated me.

Malcolm rubbed his face. Then he raised his eyes to me. "Trip--"

I waved him off. "Forget it." I was a little embarrassed to have brought it up.

"No." He sat next to me, and put his hand on my shoulder. "I want to apologize. I was out of line."

"It's okay, Malcolm, we were all gettin' on each other's nerves by then." I let out a little laugh. "You remember those old studies with mice, the ones that showed they chewed each other's tails off when they were overcrowded?"

He gave me an odd smile. "At least it didn't come to that." He squeezed my shoulder, then got up. "Would you care for some tea while we wait?"

"Nah." I sat back, watching him as he moved gracefully around the crowded interior of the craft. I could hear the rain hitting the shuttle, and it soothed me as I pondered the mystery of Malcolm. It's been well over a year and I still didn't quite know what to make of him. There was definitely a spark between us, no doubt about that. And every now and then I'd catch him giving me that look that men sometimes give each other. But more often than not he'd be in my face giving me shit about something or another. Or there'd be long stretches where he'd be cool and distant, quietly going about his duties, the ultimate professional officer.

He intrigued me.

And, I thought, as I watched him bend over to retrieve his cup, he really turned me on.

***

We walked around the shuttle, pushing our way through the hot, wet air. Strange-looking trees surrounded the small, mossy clearing, where we had landed. The trees were tall and skinny, with greenish-yellow leaves about as big as my hand. I saw that there were some fleshy things rising up out of the ground beneath them. Reminded me of mushrooms.

"It's bloody hot out here," Malcolm said, glaring at me as if it was somehow my fault.

"Damn right it is. Reminds me of home." Especially reminded me of those hot, humid summer days in Florida, where it's just too damn hot to move. When no matter what you wear sticks to your body in all the wrong places and you just want to be naked. Days that felt like sex and sweaty sheets and promises.

Malcolm stalked around to the rear of the shuttlecraft. "We came down rather hard," he said. "I'd like to check out the shuttle before we go."

I let him check the shuttle over to his heart's content, and entertained myself by watching bright blue beetles scamper up and down the trees. The heat was melting my bones. I thought about my youth and summer break and days that seemed to last forever.

"Oh hell."

"What is it?" I asked in response to the muttered curse. I turned to see Malcolm kneeling in the moss, peering under the thrusters.

"Nothing serious. But there seems to be some minor damage here." He gestured with the scanner.

I couldn't quite see it. I hunkered closer, and Malcolm pointed at the aft thruster. He kept leaning in until his shoulder was touching mine. "Right here."

He was close enough that I could have licked the sweat from his face. I considered it. Instead I moved my leg on the wet moss so that my knee was touching his. "Just a ding. Doesn't look too bad to me."

He didn't move away. "Right, sir. A 'ding'." Malcolm sounded amused. His body shifted, and next thing I knew the length of his thigh was pressed against mine.

I turned to face him, and found myself staring into cool, gray eyes. One brow was slightly raised. No accident this time. I was sure of that. Then he looked past me and his eyes narrowed. "We have company," he said quietly.

God damn. Nice timing. There was this alien standing there, watching us quietly. Neither of us heard him approach. The mossy ground must have absorbed his footfalls. We scrambled to our feet, and Malcolm fixed his phase pistol at him.

"Easy Malcolm, he don't exactly look dangerous," I said.

Our alien was a fair-skinned, slightly built humanoid, dressed simply in white robes. He wasn't holding any weapon that I could see. He was hairless with a smooth, unlined face. Kind of delicate looking. Could have been a woman--I wasn't sure. He, or she, smiled gently and bowed its head, saying something in a language I could not understand. The voice was deep, so I assumed it was a he.

"Uh, hello there," I said, feeling a little awkward. For a second I wished the captain was with me. He always seems to know what to say in these first contact situations. "I'm Commander Tucker, and this here is Lieutenant Reed. We're from the Enterprise." I waved my hand in the direction of the sky as I said "Enterprise", hoping somehow to convey where we came from.

I could tell by the blank look on the alien's face that he didn't understand a word I said. But he looked remarkably calm, so I figured he must have encountered visitors before. I could see next to me that Malcolm was scanning him, while keeping the phase pistol trained on him. "So Malcolm, if this planet is inhabited, why didn't this fellow show up on our scanners earlier?"

"Good question sir. I'm reading him fine right now."

Our visitor was speaking again, and gesturing into the forest. I waited politely until he was done. "I'm sorry," I said. "I don't understand you. But Malcolm is going to fetch the UT, okay?"

My trusty lieutenant scowled at me, then reluctantly handed me the phase pistol. I held it down at my side, not wanting to seem overly aggressive. Malcolm slid his eyes from me to the alien then back to me again.

"Go on, Malcolm. I can handle him." I wasn't sure whether I found his over-protectiveness flattering or insulting.

Malcolm still hesitated, then capitulated. "Of course."

He returned with the UT. I encouraged the alien to speak some more, and finally the gibberish began to make sense.

"rabix nebine ur. Slala? Nikka welcome you in the name of the great god," our alien intoned.

"Well, alleluia, it worked," I exclaimed. "Let us give thanks to Hoshi." Malcolm and the alien both looked at me, kind of puzzled. "Just a joke," I said to the alien. Malcolm rolled his eyes. I'm sure he was wishing the captain were here, too.

"Welcome to our humble planet," the alien said. "I am Unine, of the Holy Order of Butu." His voice was slow and calm.

"Well, thank you. We're happy to be here. Didn't know anybody was home, or else we would have called first," I explained. One thing we've learned so far is that aliens are a lot touchier than we expected. I didn't want him to think we were just barging in on him and his Holy Order. "I'm Commander Tucker, and this is Lieutenant Reed. Pleased to meet you."

Lieutenant Reed gave a curt nod, and I knew he was still expecting the worst. And I appreciated that.

We continued with the introductions, with me being vague about the Enterprise for security reasons. Malcolm didn't even have to remind me. We showed him the inside of the shuttle, and Unine told us about their temple up in the hills. It seemed they were a bunch of monks, spending their time praying and meditating. To me, that seems like a strange way to spend your life. I thought about the religious folks that visited the Enterprise to view that plume a while back. If this guy was any indication, their race wasn't quite as advanced, but there was still one thing bugging me. Malcolm got there first.

"How come we didn't detect your people with our scanners?" Malcolm asked. I knew that the casual tone was deceptive.

Unine's serene expression didn't change. "Our force field. Left behind by those who came before us. Only--" he paused. "Only it has not been working very well of late."

"Really? What seems to be the problem?" I asked.

"Unfortunately, we do not know. The knowledge has been lost. We can make minor repairs, but we don't understand the workings. Our order shuns technology, only using it to hide us from unwelcome outsiders. We simply wish to be left alone to do our duty in the name of the Exalted One."

"So we're 'welcome' outsiders?" I was being blunt, I know. But we've dealt with alien subterfuge before, and it gets old real quick.

"You did not come here heavily armed. And we hoped that--perhaps you have the knowledge to repair our system?"

I looked at Malcolm, he looked at me. He was the closest thing we had as an expert in the field. And I've been known to fix a few things in my time. "Listen, Unine, I'd like to discuss this with Mr. Reed here. Can you just hang out here for a few minutes?"

I'm not sure what I said translated well, but he seemed to catch my drift. I motioned for Malcolm to follow me, and we walked around to the other side of the shuttle. It was midday by now, and the sun had burned through the haze. There were sounds of life all around us, buzzing and chirping, and the air was perfectly still. A small furry creature, no bigger than a mouse, dashed across the moss ahead of us. It was all familiar, yet strange at the same time. Everything was slightly off, from the colors to the smells and the sounds, just enough remind me I wasn't on earth. I leaned back against the shuttle, feeling beads of sweat under my clothes as they rolled down my stomach.

Malcolm stood before me, looking impossibly alert. I swear the man never relaxes. "Commander," he said, "I would like to get a look at this force field of theirs."

Now this was interesting. I had expected him to firmly suggest we contact the Enterprise, check with the captain first, get T'Pol involved, and so on. I wondered if I was rubbing off on him, and if I'd find him eating pecan pie next. Or maybe, just maybe he just didn't want anyone else joining our party.

"Well then, let's do it. Be nice to get to know some friendly aliens, for a change," I added.

***

"Welcome to our humble home. I must ask you to first cleanse yourself before entering the main area of the temple, where the unit is housed." Unine said, as he swung open the heavy doors.

I was sweating buckets from our hike so needless to say a "cleansing" sounded pretty good to me. "Sure thing," I told him. I looked to Malcolm. He was wiping his forehead with his sleeve, looking a little wilted.

He agreed with me. "I daresay it's a fine idea."

It was wonderfully cool in the temple. The hallways were dark and gloomy and it took a few minutes for my eyes to adjust. We went down a flight of stone stairs, and I began to smell something kind of nice. Flowery and just a little spicy. Sandlewood? We came upon a room with a large sunken pool, lit by torches. Four monks were sitting cross-legged on floor, heads down, eyes closed. They were just as bald as Unine. As we arrived they opened their eyes and stood.

"These are our novices," explained Unine. "They will assist with the bathing ritual."

Okay, so this was a little weird. "Ritual? Hey, where I come from we don't need assistance--" But Unine was gone, and the novices were approaching us.

"Trip?" Malcolm sounded as dubious as I felt. The water was tempting though, clear and sparkling in the firelight. I was grubby and hot, my clothes were sticking to me and making me itchy. Two of the novices came to me and began to tug at my zipper. "Hold it." I said. "I can undress by myself, if you don't mind." I slipped off my boots, and unzipped my uniform. The novices assisted silently, despite my best efforts to dissuade them. There was something strange about them, but I just couldn't put my finger on it.

"Trip, do you think this is--"

"Malcolm, if this is what it takes to get us in there," I cut in. "An' I'm feelin' a little stinky anyway."

Malcolm looked unconvinced. His novices had watched mine undress me and now were trying to unzip him, despite Malcolm's iron grip on their wrists. Poor guy, I could tell he was torn between getting a good look at alien forcefield technology and fleeing an uncomfortable situation. With a resigned sigh he apparently made up his mind, and let the aliens undress him.

I turned away quickly. Watching Malcolm being undressed by aliens was kind of kinky. That's the kind of thinking I didn't want to broadcast. I thought hard about big bugs and stinky flowers and pretty soon my body was under control. Only then I dropped my Starfleet regulation briefs, and stood naked as a jaybird. My assistants were eyeing my body with undisguised curiosity. Maybe it was all the hair? I glanced down just to make sure my cock wasn't acting up again.

"What?" I finally asked them, looking from one to the other. Then I realized what was so strange. Their faces were practically identical. They also looked very much like Unine. Clones? I wondered. "Hey, are you guys related to Unine?" I asked.

They didn't answer me. I don't know if they had taken some vow of silence, or just had nothing to say. They just led me into the pool, their smooth hands touching my arms lightly. The water was as wonderful and cool as it looked. I stepped down into it gratefully. "Oh god, Malcolm, this is so good," I called back to him. I sat on one of the steps, so the blessedly cool water splashed up past my waist. I grinned when I realized there were flower petals floating in the water.

The novices sat on either side of me, still fully dressed, and began chanting in low tones. It was vaguely unsettling. The situation reminded me a bit of a movie I once saw about these explorers who got sacrificed by some native tribe they had found. And were eaten for dinner. But I pushed those unpleasant thoughts aside and shamelessly watched Malcolm being led to the water. He was naked, and he looked damn tasty. His skin was fair, his chest nicely defined, and his waist and hips were slender. I noticed his nipples were reddish and peaked. I noticed his soft cock was tucked against a nest of black, curly public hair, and that he hung to the left. I also noticed that he wasn't a bit shy, meeting my eyes briefly before carefully stepping into the water, silently acknowledging my scrutiny. I was glad for the cool water at my groin.

I wondered if he watched me as I got into the water.

My novices stopped chanting just as Malcolm's started. The fellow on my right began washing my arm with sweet-smelling soap. "Hey," I protested. "Now the last person who washed me was my momma, and that was at least thirty-five years ago. Now give me that damn soap." But now the other one produced a sponge and began lathering my back. Both ignored my outcry.

I decided I didn't care whether or not I was rude. "Malcolm, this is just plain weird."

"Just close your eyes and think of alien forcefields," Malcolm replied. "As I am doing."

"Real funny, Malcolm."

Once I got over the weirdness of it all it wasn't so bad. I kind of liked being fussed over. They washed my back, my shoulders, my hair. I sputtered when my now-chanting novice poured a pitcher of water over my head. "Give a guy some warning--hey!" My voice must have gone up two octaves. "Get that sponge away from there, I'll do that part myself." I snatched the sponge away. Now things were getting out of hand.

I wiped the water out of my eyes and took a peek at Malcolm. He was getting into it too, leaning forward, eyes closed, stretching his back out as the aliens washed him with long, smooth strokes. I'll be damned. Lucky aliens.

My assistants were tugging at my arm, indicating it was time to leave the water. I did so reluctantly. All in all it wasn't that unpleasant an experience--especially because I got to see Malcolm completely naked, not just partially naked, like in decon.

Afterward, we sat next to each other on the wooden bench, wrapped in fluffy towels, watching the aliens do some ritual thing with incense. "I hope the captain appreciates that I let a spooky alien wash my dick in the name of interplanetary goodwill," I muttered to him.

Malcolm chuckled. "I'll be sure to include that in the report. I, on the other hand, snatched the sponge from their hands in the nick of time," he said, looking smug.

Figures.

Our assistants finished with the incense and handed us some clothing, which turned out to be robes identical to theirs. The pants were loose and airy, and the top flowed almost to our knees. They didn't seem to have any underwear, unfortunately. I don't really like to have my parts dangling around like that, but I gathered I didn't have much choice.

Malcolm finished dressing, then stepped up to me to adjust my robe. "You look lovely, Commander," he teased.

"Thank you Malcolm. I feel lovely," I told him.

He turned to the novices. "Are we sufficiently cleansed?"

***

Apparently the cleansing ritual was successful, because the novices led us back to Unine, who was waiting on one of the terraces. Along the way we passed a gathering area where more monks were on their knees, chanting. I was starting to get used to the sound. It was just another background noise on a summer day, like the buzzing of cicadas. When we reached Unine there was another monk with him, who was introduced to us as Alsune. He resembled Unine, too, but I just chalked that up to them being hairless and all. I noticed Unine deferred to him, so I figured he was in charge.

We were only allowed to take our tools and our scanners with us. Malcolm put up a real stink about leaving his phase pistol behind, not to mention our communicators. But it was my call. I weighed the options, thought about what Jonathan would do. There was something vaguely unsettling about the place, but they hadn't been aggressive toward us at all. We were assured it would all be waiting for us, along with our uniforms, when we were through. I like to think I have respect for other people's religion and beliefs. So I agreed to their conditions and ignored the exasperation radiating out of Malcolm.

They led us down several flights of stairs to another room, bright with artificial lights.

"Oh," said Malcolm. I think we both immediately forgot all about phase pistols and communicators when we saw the room. There was a shiny white column running down the middle, with light flashing in pulses along the length. The walls were lined with wires and boxes. There were symbols of some sort on the boxes. It wasn't like anything I had seen before, and I couldn't wait to get my hands on it. Malcolm already had his scanner out.

Unine turned to me. "Do you think you could help us?" he asked.

I shrugged, trying to seem nonchalant, as if we saw stuff like this every day. "Hard to say. We'll have to take a look at it, and then I can let you know."

I was barely aware of them leaving the room.

Exploring that forcefield generator with Malcolm turned out to be one of the most enjoyable experiences of my life. We started out totally clueless--we couldn't even figure out where the power supply was. There was a whole lot of head-scratching in the beginning. But Malcolm and I worked well together, and our skills were pretty complimentary. So we persevered, and the system eventually yielded its secrets, much to our mutual delight. Most of them, that is. We never quite figured out the writing.

"What do you suppose this says?" I asked Malcolm, tapping on one the mysterious blue boxes.

"I believe it reads 'do not tap on this box under any circumstance'."

"Oh, real funny, Malcolm."

"Seriously, though, I do hope we don't end up breaking the bloody thing," he added, frowning. "That would be rather embarrassing. Toss me those calipers, will you?"

"Breaking it? Are you impunin' my engineering skills?" I lobbed the calipers to him.

"I'm not impunin' anything," Malcolm replied, mimicking my accent perfectly as he caught the instrument.

I laughed. "I get a real kick out of how you do that. I--hello there."

A monk had crept into the room with a tray of food and drinks. My stomach growled immediately, earning a bemused look from Malcolm.

"Don't know 'bout you but I'm starving," I said, lifting the lid of the tray.

"I heard the announcement."

"Oh, and you're too well-bred to make any of those bodily noises?"

"Absolutely. I don't fart or shit, either," he informed me.

I laughed. I was seeing a rare side of Malcolm, relaxed and playful, and I liked it.

In the end we succeeded in making some minor repairs to the generator. There were some units that simply needed to be replaced but it was beyond our current technology. I explained to Unine that the Vulcans might be able to manufacture the parts, or at least know who to contact. He looked dubious about contacting more aliens though. Said it was up to Alune. I was getting the impression Alune was the one who dealt with the more worldly matters of the order.

Unine thanked us nicely and offered to put us up for the night. I accepted, telling myself that wandering through the forest at night wasn't in our best interests.

***

We had been given a small room with windows that opened out on another terrace. The night air was heavy, expectant. I thought I could smell rain in the distance.

Malcolm was leaning out the window, looking about, listening. Finally he moved away and came to sit across from me, on his mat.

"You're enjoying this," he said with a little smile. "You like being here."

He was facing me, sitting cross-legged, and the candlelight did wonderful things to his face. He looked good in those robes, too, his throat exposed and shadowy. Softer than he did in his uniform. More touchable. Almost vulnerable.

I answered him carefully. "Yes, I am enjoyin' myself, but it's not just bein' on this planet." I moved so that I was sitting on the mat next to him. Part of me realized this wasn't the best time or place, but I was doing it anyway. I've never been the most sensible officer in Starfleet.

"Trip?" Malcolm asked softly.

I think he knew what I was up to, but he didn't move away from me. Just watched me settle in next to him. I took that as a good sign and went for the direct approach. "Malcolm--can I kiss you?" I asked.

"Kiss me? Why?" His eyes narrowed.

It figured that he would make this difficult. "Because you're you, and how could I not want to?" I said, desperate not to mess this up.

Malcolm regarded me with a whole lot of suspicion, like I was some bizarre alien creature he just ran across.

"I've never kissed a man before," he said at last.

I knew a challenge when I heard one. So, feeling young and reckless, I leaned over and pressed my lips against his, just for a second. It was awkward. We bumped noses along the way. But his lips were softer than I expected.

I pulled back and saw the surprise on his face. Surprise and something else--I wasn't sure what. "Wait," I said before he could speak. "I can do better."

I went in to kiss him again and this time he met me halfway. And that's a real nice thing. He kissed me back this time, his lips sweetly pressing against mine. It was nice and gentle. He tilted his head slightly and kissed me again. And again. His kisses were cautious, like he was just checking out the territory. I let him lead, not wanting to push him into anything more. And I was enjoying myself enormously. It had been a long time since I had been kissed so sweetly.

Then Malcolm let out a small sigh and relaxed, like he was surrendering. Our kisses grew into something more restless and wanting. His lips parted and I tasted him for the first time. His mouth was wet and hot and his skin smelled of the spicy stuff that was in our bath. I put a hand on his shoulder, and he rested his hand on the back of my neck, his fingers playing with my hair. So I put my other hand on his thigh, stroking the hard muscles under the silky material of the robes. It's hard to explain but it felt so right to be kissing Malcolm here on this strange planet.

"So, what do you think?" I asked when he pulled away, trying not to sound anxious. Me, I've done my share of kissing both men and women. But maybe for Malcolm it was a bit of an issue. And I knew I was being judged here.

"I think--" he whispered, dropping his hand to rest on my thigh. My upper thigh. "I think I'd like to do it some more."

His words sent a thrill through my body. I kissed him again, and it got a little rougher this time. He was right there with me, kissing me hard, his clever tongue seeking mine. I was hungry for his touch. My hands roamed around his body, and when I fingered a hard nipple through his clothes he whimpered. I sort of lost it then. Turned me on so much I didn't know what to do first. I wanted to suck on his cock, I wanted to jerk him off so that I'd be covered with his come, I wanted to fuck him, and I wanted him to fuck me hard enough to make me bleed. I wanted everything.

I yanked him hard against my body, practically dragging him into my lap. I went right for his cock, squeezing it. He was as hard as I was. He clutched my robe at my touch and moaned into my neck. "Oh, Trip. Please."

"'Please' what?" I asked, mouthing his ear, his jaw. I petted his cock through his clothes, then gave it another squeeze. "What do you want?"

Malcolm trembled all over in a good way. "What the bloody hell do you think I want?" he growled.

Next thing I knew he was pushing me so that I was lying on my back. He spread himself out over me and held my head in his hands as he kissed my face, dropping sweet little kisses on my forehead, nose, eyelids--everywhere. He was intent, like he was afraid there was a spot he might miss. Meanwhile his leg slid between mine and he rubbed his erection against my hip, while I rocked mine against his leg. There wasn't much finesse to it, but was all so good and we weren't even naked yet.

I finally got him to move enough so that I could get a hand between us and undo the fastenings on the front of his robe. I opened it and pushed it back over his shoulders. His skin was beautiful. Silky smooth and mine to touch. I stroked up and down his wiry body, wrapping my arms around him and pulling him back down on me. He had gotten my robe open too, and we gasped together as our chests touched.

"We shouldn't be doing this, not here," Malcolm panted into my ear.

"You're absolutely right, Malcolm." My hands found their way under his pants and clamped onto his tight, hard ass--the ass I had had my eyes on for months. "Let's stop this right now."

He suckled my neck and managed to find all the right spots to nibble at. "Because we really need--need to keep our wits about us," he added. His body never stopped writhing against mine. I was burning from the friction.

"Yeah, that's right. Wits. Oh--god, do that again--"

Malcolm obliged and sucked on the side of my neck again, putting some teeth into it this time. It was so fucking good I thought I was going to explode. "I got no wits left, Malcolm," I confessed. "Lost 'em durin' the first kiss."

His face appeared above mine. He had a little half-smile and even in the dim candlelight I could see the hunger there. He looked like he wanted to eat me alive. My Malcolm might run hot and cold, but right now he was so hot he was burning me up.

I rolled so that we were both on our sides, facing each other, our legs tangled, our mouths locked together. He put his hand flat against my chest. I realized then that he was used to being up against a women's chest, and women's chests tend look a good bit different from mine. He pressed his fingers into my muscles, kneading, feeling the hardness under my skin. He touched my nipples, first one, then the other, rolling them under his fingers, then running his nails over them. I groaned and bucked my hips against his, helplessly, breaking off the kiss, then mouthing his neck, his shoulder, anyplace I could reach. My hands went to his pants, and he pulled back a little, his eyes wide. But he didn't try and stop me so after a bit of fumbling I got them down around his hips and his cock was in my hand. It was hard and heavy and I could feel the wetness when I ran my thumb over the tip.

Malcolm started thrusting into my hand, while he grabbed me and kissed me, sucking my tongue into his mouth. I decided I liked the way he kissed--even frantic and losing it he kissed so damned thoroughly that it was like it was the most important thing in the universe. I was disappointed when he stopped to look down at my hand stroking his cock. But then he smiled a little, like he couldn't quite believe what he was seeing. He put his hand over mine, then moved it to my wrist and up along my arm.

"Oh--oh--" He gasped and shuddered, clutching at my arm.

"That's it, baby," I whispered against his cheek. "Just let it fly--"

And he did. With a low, guttural groan, Malcolm came, spattering my stomach in long, hot spurts. It was all so god damn good I couldn't take it anymore. As soon as he finished I fumbled with my pants and took my own aching cock in hand.

Before I even started to jack myself off, Malcolm's hand was there too, slick with his come. I was on the edge, just from doing him. A few strokes and my balls tightened up, I was crying out Malcolm's name and oh god, I was there, I was coming and holding Malcolm tight and almost sobbing it was so good.

I stayed tucked up against Malcolm afterward, my body completely limp. He held onto me, and stroked my hair silently. I realized it had begun to rain.

My body must have tensed up a little because Malcolm eased me back and gazed at my face curiously. "What is it?" he asked.

"Was that okay, Malcolm? What that what you wanted?"

Malcolm closed his eyes and let out a little laugh. "Oh yes. I wanted that. I wanted you." He opened his eyes, and looked at me, at my body. Then looked down at his own. "Oh my, look at that." He dragged a finger through the semen dripping across my stomach. "You're quite a mess, Commander Tucker."

He brought his finger to his mouth and licked it. I lay back on the mat and groaned in admiration. "You're killin' me here, Malcolm."

I closed my eyes and heard him get up and move about the room. A moment later he was back, wiping my stomach with a soft cloth.

"So you're okay with this whole 'guy' thing?" I asked.

In response he bent over and kissed me. "Yes, Trip, I'm okay with the guy thing." His eyes twinkled. "I'm even okay with the whole 'Trip' thing, shocking as it may seem."

"It is pretty damn shocking." Pretty damn shocking that he was nestling up against me like that, too. And playing with my chest hair. I held him tight, and as I drifted off to sleep I thought how strange it was to be here on this nameless planet, holding Malcolm in my arms. I listened to the rain, the wind in the trees. When I finally slept I dreamed of home, of summer and freedom and endless blue skies.

***

The tolling of bells pulled me out of sleep. The sound was deep and reverberated through the walls--and right through my stomach. I was confused and disoriented, more so when I realized I was wrapped around a hard, muscular body. Then the fog in my brain cleared. Malcolm. I grinned against his neck. Then a second burst of tolling rang out, nearly shaking the walls this time.

"Goddamn..." I mumbled.

"One hell of an alarm clock." He turned in my arms and eyed me sleepily. "Good morning."

His hair was sticking up all over, his face creased, his eyes bleary, and he needed a shave. He took my breath away. Speech was impossible, so I kissed him instead. He didn't even have morning breath. His mouth was just as sweet as the night before. As I rolled on top of him he tugged both our pants down and instinctively wrapped his legs around me.

The bells tolled a third as our cocks came into contact, making us both laugh. I liked the way he laughed, the way the sound rumbled up from his belly, the way his lips curled and his eyes danced. The next time we made love I wanted him to be deep inside me, laughing. I wanted him to put his arms around my waist and hold me close while he laughed so I could feel it everywhere in my body. And maybe I'd laugh too, out of sheer joy.

I rubbed my cock against his and he groaned and said my name over and over, like those chanting monks out there. My hands found their way to his ass and I pushed him harder against me, our dicks banging together, the soft skin of his balls brushing against mine. The air around us grew hot and heavy, making our bodies sweaty and slick. Sunlight filled the room and the bells tolled again. Malcolm gasped beneath me, his hips shoving me up roughly as his fingers dug into my shoulders. He said my name one last time, his head falling back while a wet heat blossomed between us, mixing with our sweat. As the last toll of the bells faded away, I tumbled over the edge and came, too, sharing my heat with Malcolm.

It took a while for us to come out of our post-coital haze. Not that I was in any rush to get moving--I felt like my body had melted. And Malcolm was relaxed and lazy, a side of him I had never seen before. He squirmed against me, getting comfy, licking and kissing my skin. Sex brought out the kitten in him, it seemed, something I definitely wanted to encourage.

But all too soon there was a tapping at our door. I dragged myself off the mat and made myself as presentable as possible. From Malcolm's dubious expression, I knew I wasn't entirely successful. I just grinned at him and went to the door.

"Good morning, Tucker." It was Unine, followed by novices holding trays with steaming bowls on them. I realized I was real hungry. "I hope--" Instead of going on, he brought himself up short, sniffing.

"What's the problem, Unine?" I asked. Our host had a look of utter revulsion. Malcolm was at my side in an instant.

He backed away from us. "Despoilers," he said, his voice full of astonishment and horror. The novices dropped their trays with a crash.

"What the hell are you talkin' about?" I demanded.

"How could you. You said you would help and now you have contaminated the temple." His voice rose, almost to a shriek.

"What?" I turned to the novices. "Would someone please explain to me what's goin' on?"

The novices shook their heads and moved further away from us. Malcolm and I exchanged worried looks. I thought back to the incident with Porthos, and wondered if we pee'd somewhere we shouldn't have.

"You have soiled a place of worship and now you must face the consequences," Unine exclaimed.

Soiled. It was then I realized he was talking about our lovemaking. The way he sniffed the air when he entered our room--he could smell it on us. Hell, he probably took one look at our faces and knew. "Listen," I said, holding up my hands, "We didn't know--"

He leapt back even further. He was actually cringing. "Do not touch me. You have spilled your seed and there must be a cleansing ritual--we will pray for guidance--"

I didn't like the sound of that at all. These folks were too weird--too many rituals. Two of the novices had eased out the door already, maybe to get reinforcements. This wasn't looking good at all. We had no weapons and there seemed to be lots of monks around. "Uh, Malcolm?"

Malcolm was at the door, now, checking out the hallway. He gave me a curt nod that said the coast was clear, for the moment at least.

I spoke fast. "Listen guys, we've obviously overstayed our welcome and the romance has kind of gone out of the place for me so we're just gonna hit the road now--" And I was out the door, running, Malcolm right behind me.

We dashed down a flight of stone steps into a larger room with four doorways. I was confused--last night I had been so distracted by Malcolm I hadn't paid attention to where I was being led. Thank goodness Malcolm had paid attention.

"This way," he hissed.

I ran after him, and we came upon the pool where we had been bathed the night before. Two monks were coming out of the water and they stopped when they saw us. Malcolm drew up short and I almost slammed into him. Then I saw what he was looking at.

"Well, I'll be damned," I said to no one in particular.

The monks were naked, and I saw the blank space between their legs. They had no genitals--their crotches were smooth and hairless. That explained the odd looks the novices were giving my body.

The monks grabbed their towels and backed away from us. "Oh, hell." I heard Malcolm say with dismay. I turned to look, and there were a bunch of monks, armed this time. Crossbows. Who would have thought?

***

The room was small and airless. Any other situation and I would have appreciated seeing Malcolm tied up like that, hands above his head, legs splayed out in front of him. But from the look on his face I figured it would be a cold day in hell before I got to appreciate him again in any way.

I looked away from him, and shifted around a bit, trying to find a comfortable spot for my butt on the stone floor. "Malcolm--" I tried.

"Commander."

So it was "Commander" now. Fine. I needed to focus on more immediate matters anyway. Unine was upstairs planning some ritual cleansing, Alsune was meditating and praying for guidance on how to appropriately deal with two despoilers who couldn't keep it in their pants. Speaking of which--"Malcolm, if they have no dicks, how come Unine recognized the smell?"

Malcolm stopped struggling with his restraints and scowled. "How the bloody hell should I know?" Malcolm snapped. He thought for a moment. "Perhaps some of them are born equipped."

"How do they get born at all? They kinda looked alike, do you think they were clones?"

"Excellent question. Perhaps you can ask Unine while we are being 'cleansed'."

For heaven's sake--"Malcolm, you can stop with the damn attitude. It's not like you were tellin me 'no, no, a thousand times no'."

Malcolm leaned his head back, bumping it against the wall, and closed his eyes. "I know," he said, sounded resigned. "It's just that--" He opened his eyes and frowned at me. "It's just that whenever I'm alone with you my common sense simply vanishes."

I had nothing to say to that. He sounded so dismayed by it, and I couldn't apologize, because I wasn't sorry for it at all. Malcolm might view our time together as a major mistake in his good judgment, but I never would.

We sat for an hour or so more, each silent with our own thoughts. We had only a few more hours before we were due to check in with Enterprise. The captain would definitely come looking for us after that, but since we got the force field working so nicely, it wasn't likely they'd find us. That really pissed me off. We should have just broken the damn thing.

The only sound I could hear was water dripping slowly down the walls. And Malcolm's breathing.

I think I dozed a little in the heat because I was startled by the door swinging open. In the doorway stood four novices with crossbows, and a monk I had never seen before. At least I didn't think I'd seen him. They all looked so alike it was hard to tell.

"Now what?" I asked sourly.

He didn't answer, but carefully cut the ropes holding our arms up, leaving our wrists bound. My shoulders ached from the awkward position and I heard Malcolm grunt as he lowered his arms.

"Up," the monk ordered, stepping back, presumably to avoid touching us.

We stood, both of us a little unsteady on our feet. The novices still had the weapons trained on us. Primitive, for sure, but lethal just the same.

"You guys get that cleansing thing all figured out yet?" I asked.

"Go."

Neither of us moved. "What are you planning to do with us?" asked Malcolm.

"Go."

"Chatty, isn't he?" I commented.

But since there were four crossbows aimed at us we went.

After climbing way too many stairs I began to smell the forest again. Maybe they were letting us go? Or maybe they were taking us outside to be shot--after all, there's no sense in having despoilers bleeding all over your nice, clean temple.

Then we were at the front of the temple. The doors were flung open, and we were roughly pushed outside. The sunlight blinded me. I heard the door slam shut behind us, and I rubbed my eyes, blinking, looking about, expecting the worst.

And there, right in front of me, looking mighty pissed, was Captain Archer. And T'Pol. And a little behind them, Travis. Who was trying unsuccessfully not to laugh.

***

The journey back to the shuttle seemed twice as long. The captain only reluctantly let Travis cut the ropes on our wrists.

"Cap'n--" I said, striding fast to keep up with him, the sweat pouring down my face. The heat was getting to me.

"Alsune responded when we tried to contact you, Mr. Tucker. He explained the situation to us," he said sharply.

"Listen Cap'n--"

The captain held up a hand and cut me off. "No. I'll see you both in my ready room and listen to your explanation there. There will be repercussions to this, gentlemen."

"Yes, sir." Malcolm answered softly.

And I thought Jonathan was pissed when we got caught wandering through the air duct in the repair station. Now he looked utterly furious. I stole a glance at Malcolm, marching purposefully, his robes wet with sweat and his hair curling riotously. He wouldn't look at me.

"Commander Tucker."

T'Pol had come up next to me, speaking my name quietly. She was holding our uniforms, and handed my communicator back to me. "The captain was very concerned. Alsune needed to be convinced that a sacrifice was not in his people's best interests." She spoke calmly as ever, and I was grateful for that. God knows what she thought of me at that point, though.

I suspected the whole ship knew by now. I cringed at the thought. Alsune's explanation probably occurred right there on the Bridge. I wonder what he said--I could just hear him calmly explaining how two of the Enterprise's officers got semen all over their pristine temple, and now he had to kill them both.

I stole another look at Malcolm. He was the most private person I knew. It was probably his worst nightmare--the entire crew aware of the details of his sex life. I just knew I was never going to get my hands on him again. I thought back to how he said my name that morning, with such reverence. I'd never hear such a thing again. The loss was like a physical blow, leaving me nauseated and dizzy. The air around me was too hot, I could barely pull it into my lungs. At last we reached the clearing. I saw that they had landed the shuttle only a few meters from Shuttlepod One.

The captain turned to me, his eyes glittering dangerously. "Now, do I have to make you two ride in separate shuttles?"

I looked at him, then stared at my feet. "No, sir." I heard the echo of Malcolm's response behind me. I supposed I should have been indignant at the Captain's comment, but I just didn't have the energy.

"Good. Travis, would you be so kind as to escort Commander Tucker and Lieutenant Reed back to Enterprise?"

"Sure thing, Captain."

I considered pumping Travis for information on how much the crew knew during the ride in and found I didn't really care. I watched the captain walk off, shaking his head, wiping it off as he and T'Pol headed toward Shuttlepod Two. T'Pol nodded in response to something. Jonathan was mad at me, in a big way, but I told myself he'd cool down. Eventually. Our friendship has always been strong, and he's a real reasonable kind of guy. At least, he always has been.

The sick feeling in my gut got stronger, and I closed my eyes.

"Commander?" Travis called to me. "Your chariot awaits." He gestured to the open door. I walked over slowly, trying not to let my humiliation show, not in front of an ensign.

I threw myself down on a bench, exhausted. I was tired, my heart ached and the room was starting to spin. To my surprise, Malcolm came over and sat next to me. He was watching me with an odd look on his face.

"What?" I asked, seriously not in the mood for some pissy little comment from the man.

Malcolm leaned close. He smiled. I could smell his sweat, and the musky smell of sex. Our sex.

He whispered in my ear. "I can't wait to see what you have planned for our second date."


	2. Chapter 2. Stewing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to Kylie and Kim, my darling betas, for catching all my goofy mistakes, and for their suggestions and encouragement. And special thanks to Juli, for coming up with a great title. Her thoughtful feedback always inspires me.

  
Author's notes: Thank you to Kylie and Kim, my darling betas, for catching all my goofy mistakes, and for their suggestions and encouragement. And special thanks to Juli, for coming up with a great title. Her thoughtful feedback always inspires me.  


* * *

I didn't need a Vulcan mind meld to figure out that the captain was still really pissed at us. I had hoped the shuttle trip back to Enterprise would give him some time to cool down, but I was wrong. He was visibly steaming as Malcolm and I stood at attention, still wearing our sweat-stained robes, while Malcolm gave him the short version of our report.

"We decided to remain in the temple for the night, sir," Malcolm told him. "And thenâ€”that was whenâ€”"

Malcolm paused, clearly uncomfortable. I did the gentlemanly thing and jumped in.

"That was when I kissed Malcolm, andâ€”you knowâ€”one thing led to another." I could still feel him kissing me, could still feel the way he held my head in his hands. "It was my fault, Captain. I know I should have waited for a better time and place."

Malcolm turned to face me. "Oh, don't be so bloody noble. I'm no shrinking violet, I kissed you back and then some. Captain, we are equally at fault."

"Gentlemenâ€”please," Jonathan warned.

I ignored the captain. "I started it, and you know it."

"I flirted with you long before you began flirting with me," Malcolm informed me tartly.

"Commander? Lieutenant?" The tone of voice indicated that we had better cut it out right now.

"Sir," we acknowledged simultaneously. We faced our incredulous captain.

"I hold you both equally at fault. The fact is that you twoâ€”, " he gave us an odd look, "that you two both behaved irresponsibly and you both conducted yourselves in a manner that is unflattering as a Starfleet officer." He clasped his hands behind his back, and announced our sentence. "Two weeks, gentlemen. Outside of your regular duties, you two are confined to your quarters for two weeks." He paused, head cocked. "Separately."

"Does this mean no conjugal visits?" I blurted out.

Sometimes I just don't know what gets into me.

Our captain abruptly rubbed his nose and turned his back to us. He was either trying not to laugh or trying to resist the urge to toss me out the nearest airlock.

At last Jonathan took a deep breath and turned to face us. "In addition," he continued, choosing to ignore my comment, "I'm assigning you both to inventory the main stockroom."

Inventory? That huge stockroom?

"Cap'nâ€”" I protested.

"There have been some discrepancies noted between the automated database and the actual items on the shelves. Either people aren't properly logging in what they take, or there's a bug in the system. Either way, we need to know what is on those shelves."

"Yes, sir," we said in unison. He was right, of course, the job needed to be done. And as a punishment, it wasn't too bad. Tedious, but not hard.

"Lieutenant, I've also approved the proposal for the security alert system. I want those upgrades to be in place as soon as possible."

Malcolm and I nodded.

"Captain," Malcolm said, his voice hesitant, "What about the report to Starfleet? Do they really need to knowâ€”" He looked at me, then back at the captain. "Do they need to know the details?"

Jonathan contemplated Malcolm, his face softening. "Yes, that." He sighed. "I suppose we could be vague in a few areas in the report."

"Thank you, sir." Malcolm's relief was clear.

"Don't thank me. I'm very disappointed in both of you. You were careless, and used poor judgment. That kind ofâ€”" Jonathan paused, looking a little flustered. "That sort of activity should only occur whenâ€”" He stopped again, looking a little lost. He finished, "â€”only when it's acceptable."

Despite feeling as guilty as all heck at disappointing the man, I nearly grinned at his discomfort. I did my best to look serious.

"My senior officers should be setting an example to the rest of the crew," Jonathan concluded.

"Of course, sir," Malcolm murmured. I stared straight ahead, wondering if Malcolm was looking at me. Reproachfully.

I figured he had every right to. I had let both Malcolm and the captain down. I shouldn't have let our flirting escalate like that, not there in that temple, where we were facing so many unknowns. It was inappropriate. At least I could have waited until we were back on the shuttle. But Malcolm, well, Malcolm was right there, warm and welcoming. He let me kiss him, let me touch him. He wanted me as much as I wanted him.

"Two weeks, gentlemen," Jonathan reminded us. "Understood?" He looked directly at me."

"Yes, sir."

Our eyes met, and he nodded, satisfied I had gotten the message. "Dismissed."

We skulked out of the captain's ready room and headed back to our respective quarters, each lost in his own thoughts. I was tired, dirty, and hungry. I told myself I wanted a shower, and then some food. But what I really wanted was Malcolm. I could smell him as he walked beside me, a sweaty, musky scent rising off him. I wanted a shower with Malcolm, food with Malcolm (maybe eaten off Malcolm), and then Malcolm again. Malcolm, in my arms, teasing me, kissing me, loving me.

But all that would have to wait. I was responsible for what had happened. We had nearly been killedâ€”sacrificed for despoiling a temple. So I fully intended to behave like a model officer. For example, there would be no sneaking off for a quickie while on duty. I owed that much to Malcolm, and to the captain.

In the back of my mind, though, there was that little voice that said Malcolm might somehow come to his senses, that our getting together was somehow inspired by the sleepy heat of that planet. And now, with things back to normal on the ship, he'd realize what a mistake he'd made. That he had, as he even admitted, made an error in his good judgment. Or maybe he had just been curious about what it was like to be with a man, and I had been the nearest available opportunity. I didn't want that. I wanted Malcolm. Two weeks of waiting, of enforced celibacyâ€”what if Malcolm decided he didn't want to do that ever again with me?

"Two weeks," Malcolm said, at last, interrupting my increasingly dark thoughts.

"Yeah, two weeks." I sighed. That should be just enough time for Malcolm to realize his little planetside fling was just thatâ€”a fling.

We reached his door and Malcolm's eyes met mine. "I expect you to make this wait worth my while."

There was nothing I'd rather do. "I promise, darlin', I'll make it up to you," I assured him. "Over and over again. As long as you still want me to."

Malcolm put his hand on my shoulder. "Yes, Trip, I'll still want you." He scrutinized my face, and with a small, disbelieving smile said, "What, do you think this was just some mindless fling for me? That I was just curious to know what it was like to make love to a man?"

"No," I lied, startled that Malcolm could read me so well. Malcolm rolled his eyes. I'm a terrible liar. I hurried on, "I was just so sure I had lost you before I ever really had you. I thought that you were so mad at me you'd neverâ€”"

Malcolm interrupted me with a kiss. It was swift but tender and sweet, and it spoke volumes.

"I was angry with myself for not having better sense than to do it in that temple. For getting lost in you so easily. You know that," he scolded gently.

I put my hand over the one he was resting on my shoulder. The back of his hand was warm and sticky with dried sweat. "We'll be sensible from now on," I promised him.

I got a sly smile in response. "Not too sensible, I hope."

I liked the sound of that.

At the sound of a nearby door opening Malcolm dropped his hand from my shoulder. "But right now, I'm starving," he said casually. "Meet you in the mess in 20 minutes?"

After he went inside I stood staring at his door, grinning like a damn fool. Maybe I was going to get to keep him, after all.

***

Two weeks.

I knew I could handle it. Because I was a Starfleet officer, accustomed to adversity. I wasn't some insecure, hormone-crazed teenager. Even though I felt like one at times.

After dinner with Malcolm, I puttered around my room, not knowing what to do with myself. My roomed suddenly felt so big and empty. And even though I was exhausted, not to mention groggy from eating nearly everything in sight during dinner, I wasn't ready for sleep yet. The teasing from our fellow crewmen during dinner wasn't as bad as I had expected. Funny, though, it seemed like all of it had been directed at me. I reassured myself by thinking that it wasn't because folks respected Malcolm more than they respected me, but because he handled all the weapons on the ship.

Finally, I stopped wandering around my room and sat at my desk to put together a schedule for the security upgrades. Remembering Malcolm snide comment on my original proposal, I crafted my sentences carefully, managing to end every damn one in a preposition. I divided up the tasks, assigning some personnel from Engineering and leaving the rest up to Malcolm and his team. I sent it off to Malcolm to approve with the satisfaction of a job well done.

By then, I thought I was ready to sleep. But instead, I just lay in bed in the dark, visions of Malcolm dancing through my head. Malcolm touching me. Malcolm clutching at my clothes as he shuddered against me, his face a mixture of delight and astonishment. How comforting it was to fall asleep with that slender, wiry body wrapped around me.

I imagined our future together, night after night of having that sexy, unpredictable man in my bed and in my arms, waking up next to him every day. Two weeks was nothing, I decided. After all, I had spent well over a year longing for the man. What was two weeks after all that time spent wondering if he wanted me, trying to interpret those mixed signals?

I became confident, almost cocky about the situation. I could wait, I told myself. That was before I realized the amount of heat Malcolm had concealed under that cool exterior.

***

Engineering was quiet the following morning. My team treated me the same as always, although I saw folks who seemed to smiling an awful lot. I went about my business and was reading over the logs from the past day when Malcolm came in, just like he's done a million times before. And my heart leapt when I saw him, just like it had done a million times before. But this time, as I watched him approach, I thought to myself that things were different. He was my lover now, and damn, if that wasn't just the finest thing in the whole entire universe.

"Hey there, Malcolm. Did you get my implementation plan?" I asked.

"Yes, and now that I've translated it into English," he gave me a pained look, "I fully approve."

I knew immediately that my efforts were appreciated. "Should only take a few days," I acknowledged. "Let's get everyone together in, say, a half-hour, and we'll get started?"

"Very good, sir." He leaned toward me. "Sleep well last night?" he asked, his voice intimate.

I shook my head. "No."

"Neither did I." He gazed up at me from under those long eyelashes.

"Stop it," I told him.

"Stop what?"

"You've got that sexy flirty thing going on, and it's makin' me crazy. I won't be able to concentrate on anything all day."

"Really?" Malcolm looked as if he just discovered a new form of explosive. "You find me that distracting?"

That look in his eye worried me.  
***

He started it that evening, in the stockroom.

"Trip, may I ask you a question?" Malcolm's voice came from behind me. We were working opposite sides of the aisle in the huge cavern of a space.

"Of course." I was up on the small stepladder, scanning the containers on the top shelf. Who knew Enterprise stocked so many different kinds of shampoo?

"About sex," he clarified.

I scanned what I was sure was the fortieth case of that nasty strawberry-scented shampoo, the stuff that smelled nothing like real strawberries. I twisted around to face the other man. "Malcolm, you can ask me damn well anything."

He stared down at his scanner, then looked up at me. "You've done it with other menâ€”you've gone all the way, right?"

I grinned. All the way. It was a cute way to put it. "Yeah, Malcolm, I have."

"And do you have a preference? I mean, do you prefer to be on top or bottom?"

I shrugged. "It depends on my mood, and the person. I like both. I like just about anything, when it's the right person."

"Huh," was Malcolm's only reply.

I went back to work and we were quiet for a time, with only the beeping of our scanners filling the room. I pushed aside the last case of coconut-scented shampoo and turned again to watch Malcolm's back as he opened a container and examined it's contents. "Malcolm, you know, we can take this slowâ€”we don't have to do anything you're uncomfortable with," I told him, still under the mistaken impression he was a little shy about such things. "I likeâ€”"

He faced me now, cocked his head one side, and asked, "Who said I wanted to take things slowly?"

"I. Um, oh." I collected my scattered wits and was about speak again when I was interrupted by the sound of the stockroom door. "Uh, hello, Lieutenant," I called out, embarrassed to hear my voice was higher pitched than usual.

"Hello, gentlemen," Lieutenant Hess sang out to us as she headed for the next aisle. We went back to scanning cases as she rummaged around.

"Now you be sure to log that item out, whatever it is," I said with mock severity.

She appeared in our aisle, holding up toothpaste and new toothbrush. "Absolutely, Commander. Wouldn't want to bring down the ship's entire computer system by absconding with the toiletries."

Malcolm and I both laughed as she logged in her items and then left with a cheery goodbye.

I reached for the next container, pausing to read the labelâ€”woman's sanitary items. Huh. I thought there were pills for that sort of thing now. The container was just out of reach. I figured maybe some women went the natural routeâ€”couldn't see it myself, sort of a monthly nuisance if you ask me. When I balanced on the edge of the stepladder, my fingertips only brushed the surface. Damn. I thought that maybe if I rested one foot on the shelf I could reach it without having to climb down and move the darn ladder. I was swinging my leg out when I heard Malcolm's voice again.

"I've used toys before, you know. I know what I like. And I want it."

"What?" I lost my balance as I realized what he was talking about. Scrambling for a handhold, I caught myself just in time.

Malcolm was at the ladder in an instant. "Trip, you should be more careful. Move the bloody ladder if you need to, don't dangle off the side," he admonished.

I pulled myself back onto the ladder, managed to descend, and sat with a thud. "Don't go talkin' about stuff like when I'm reachin' for something," I snapped back. I took a deep breath and grinned. "Like to play with toys, huh?" Now there was a visual I was never going to get out of my head. Not that I wanted to.

Malcolm smirked. "Oh, yes." He came closer and rested his hands on my knees. "But I'm sure it's nothing like the real thing."

The real thing perked up considerably during this conversation, especially with Malcolm's hot little hands in sight. And Malcolm knew it. He worked his hands up slowly toward my crotch and I felt a flush rising up through my body, like my blood was about to boil over. Just before he reached his destination, I snatched his hands and held them tightly in mine. "Malcolm," I growled, "you're not making this any easier."

"I have no intention of making this easy for you," he said. "I like you all hot and bothered. You will fuck me when this is all over, won't you?"

I was still holding his hands in mine. "Oh, yeah. I'll do it any way you want, darlin'."

"Good. Now let's deal with this bloody inventory."

As I climbed back up the ladder, all I could think about was Malcolm squirming beneath me as I sank my cock into him.

It was going to be a long two weeks.

***

The days fell into a routine: my regular duties in the morning, the tactical upgrades in the afternoon, and stockroom inventory in the evening. And through it all, there was Malcolm. I was acutely aware of his presence. It was as if my senses were especially attuned to him. When I wasn't looking at him, I could hear him breathing, hear his uniform rustle as he moved. I could hear his soft murmur of, "What have we here?" whenever he came across something interesting.

And if I looked over at him, I would get that look in return, the one that said he knew exactly what I did alone in bed every night after I turned out the lights. He was all too aware of the way he made me feel. I was constantly horny, all restless and needing, feeling like I had an itch deep inside of me that I couldn't scratch.

Being with Malcolm in the stockroom was sheer torture, and I loved every minute of it. He was smug, he was charming, and he was irresistible. He stood way too close when he spoke to me. Whenever he handed me something his fingers lingered on mine. He kissed me when nobody was around. I kissed him back. Brief, affectionate kisses, and that was all I allowed myself. Because I made a promise to the captain.  
***

For a few days, I was still embarrassed enough about the whole incident that I avoided the captain as much as possible. I made excuses for missing dinner with him, saying we were working hard on getting those upgrades in place, which was the literal truth.

Jonathan probably suspected my true reasonsâ€”you don't get to be captain by being stupid about folks. Plus he knows me pretty well. So, after five days of my avoidance behavior, he cornered me in the mess.

"Trip! Taking a break, I see? Don't bother with that sandwich. Chef has cooked up a couple of steaks for us." He actually removed the sandwich from my hand, took my by the elbow, and steered me to the captain's mess.

When he sat me down in my chair, I realized there were only two places set. "T'Pol isn't joining us?" I asked, hoping I didn't sound as panicked as I felt.

"No, she has a conference with Ambassador Soval. Something to do with parallels between the movie Shane and a few of our earlier mission reports." He poured me a glass of iced tea. "Tripâ€”"

Just then the steward came in with our meals, granting me a short reprieve. When he finally left, I jumped in with both feet. "Cap'n, you know I'm really sorry about all that. That you had to come to our rescue."

He put his fork down and looked me over thoughtfully. "I know you're sorry. So am I. But don't be too hard on yourself, we're all still learning our way around out here." He grinned and continued, "I'm sure you remember an incident with a certain canine member of this crew?"

We both laughed a little, and I felt a good deal better. "We've sure fumbled a few out here," I said, "but overall I think that we're not handling ourselves too badly. I promise you, Cap'n, I'll keep it in my pants during away missions from now on."

He pointed his fork at me. "See that you do. And how is Malcolm taking all this?" he asked as he cut his steak. "I have to admit, I'm rather surprised that he was involved."

"Oh, you were, were you?" I snorted. "Actually, so was I. He's doing okay. More pissed at himself than anything else right now."

"Things okay between you two?"

"Yeah," I said. I didn't add that they could be much better if we could be alone together. "We're good."

"Good. You two make an interesting pair. So different from each other."

"What do you mean?" I couldn't resist asking, even though I knew I'd regret it. "In what way?"

"Malcolm," he thought for a moment, "Malcolm is the ideal officer. And he has this quiet sort of dignityâ€¦" Jon trailed off, a devilish look on his face.

"Oh, I get it. My dignity ain't so quiet?" Jonathan gave me a look that clearly indicated that that wasn't it at all. Which I didn't mind one bit. Who needed dignity? I had Malcolm. And it was good to have my friend back. I dug into dinner with gusto.

***

Frisbees. I'll be damned. We had three cases of neon orange Frisbees on the ship. I laughed and threw one to Malcolm, who was scanning away at the far end of the isle. "Hey, Malcolm, heads up."

"Whatâ€”Christ, Tripâ€”" Despite his surprise, he caught it expertly. "This color makes my eyes hurt," he said, examining it with a frown. "What else is down there, lawn darts? A badminton set? Croquet?"

I rummaged around. "Nope, but lookâ€”a boccie ball set. We're all set for a Fourth of July picnic." I had fond memories of family picnicsâ€”beer, hot dogs and hamburgers, mosquitoes and fireworks. Good times.

"Oh yes, Independence Day."

"Call me a Yank and I'll come over there and spank you," I threatened.

"I'd like to see you try," Malcolm immediately responded, getting all haughty on me, then added deliberately, "Yank."

After a silent, electric moment, I began stalking toward him. He watched me approach, licking his lips. I got hard. I wanted him. He wanted me. There were big boxes in the stockroom, ones we could easily hide behind. It wouldn't take long, not at this point.

The stockroom door opened and I froze. Hoshi strolled in. I couldn't decide if she had the best timing in the world or the worst.

I gave her a little wave, and Malcolm chatted casually with her while she poked around. I logged in the existence of the boccie ball set and moved onto the next row. Hoshi eventually left with a basketful of items, including one brightly colored Frisbee, all carefully logged into the master inventory.

We worked in silence for a time. Then I heard him give a little grunt of interest.

"Whatcha got?" I asked as I wandered over to him. He was looking over cases filled with small plastic bottles.

"It appears we have a healthy supply of massage oil," Malcolm answered.

His tone was suggestive, and I got that twisty feeling in my gut. "Good," I said. "Let's grab a case."

He raised his brows. "These are unscented," he gestured to a case on left, "but these are labeled 'Forest Sky'. What the bloody hell does a forest sky smell like?"

I had always been puzzled by the names of these things myself. "Open it and smell it," I said.

"No, wait, here's 'Winter Spice'. That sounds a bit better, doesn't it?"

"A lot better than 'English Garden'," I mused, looking over the stacked cases. At the annoyed sniff from Malcolm, I hurriedly added, "I mean, I figure it's a little too flowery for me. Us. Unless you like floweryâ€”I meanâ€”" I stumbled over my words.

"Do you really think I want your cock smelling like roses when you are fucking me?"

My cock jumped. It obviously didn't care what it smelled like.

"By the way," he continued, heedless of my discomfort. "I truly enjoy a good foot massage after a long day. Just so you know. So, could we use this as a lubricant for sex?" He examined the bottle he was holding, then turned it upside down, watching the air bubble flow up. "Do you think it would be effective?

I stared at the bottle, trying to breathe evenly and to stop the room from spinning. I was pretty sure there wasn't any blood at all left in my brain.

"Could be too thin," he continued. He was in research mode. "Let's seeâ€”" He picked up a bottle of the unscented oil, unsealed it, took my hand in his, and poured a few drops onto my upturned palm.

I just stood there stupidly, watching him. I watched as he put the bottle down and ran his fingers over my palm, testing the slickness of the liquid.

"What do you think?" he asked. He was being so cool, he could have been at his station on the bridge, asking me whether a new power relay was working properly. As cool as can be, holding my hand, his fingers lazily stroking my palm. I was on fire.

"I think you just discovered a new erogenous zone," I heard a breathy voice that couldn't possibly be mine say.

"Trip, your entire body is one big erogenous zone," he said.

I bent forward and kissed him, then pulled my hand from his. "I'm gonna go work on the other side of the room now," I told him.

***

With the way Malcolm kept pushing, I guess I shouldn't have been surprised that he was the one that stumbled. It had been ten days, and we were both more than a little on edge.

We were both working right up front, near the door. I didn't hear him coming up behind me until he was whispering in my ear.

"I think about it every night, you know," he said, breathing into my ear. "I never held another man's cock in my hands before. It felt so right. The way you movedâ€”the sounds you madeâ€”"

"Malcolm, please," I groaned.

He kissed the back of my neck and put his arms around my waist, spooning up behind me. His hips touched my ass and I could feel the hardness of his arousal. My scanner slipped from my grasp, hitting the shelf with a quiet thump.

"That I could touch you like that, feel you in my hands, you were so hot, so hardâ€”it was incredible." His hands were in my front pockets now, only the thin lining of the coverall was between his hands and my inner thighs.

"Pleaseâ€”" I wasn't sure what I was asking for any more. He felt so good. Like rain in the desert.

"Tell me what we're going to do when this is over." His voice was ragged.

I rubbed my ass against his groin and heard him gasp. My hands were flat against the metal shelf, my palms slick with sweat.

His hands reached further into my pockets and touched my cock. And I remembered how we stumbled out of that temple, and the look on Jonathan's face.

"No, Malcolmâ€”" I untangled myself from his body. "Malcolm, this isn't rightâ€”we can'tâ€”I don't wantâ€”"

He let go of me suddenly and I stumbled against the shelving unit.

"No?" he repeated. I suspected that wasn't a word Malcolm liked to hear.

The stockroom door pinged and slid open. We sprung apart even further, and I moved to see who it was that had the lousiest fucking timing in the universe. Or the best.

"Good evening, Commander, Lieutenant," Rostov said, as he headed for aisle four.

I forced myself to call out a cheery greeting in return, while I watched Malcolm turn his back to me and begin working again, his movements stiff and precise. I felt bad that I had rejected him, but what else could I have done? He knew how I felt. I had promised the captain.

I listened for Rostov's exit, then went to Malcolm's side the second the door slid shut. "Malcolm, you've got to knowâ€”" I began, and then the goddamn door opened again and two crewmen entered. I wondered what the hell was with these peopleâ€”did they think there was a fucking sale going on in here or what?

"I believe I will call it a night, sir." Malcolm said, heading for the door. He wouldn't look at me. "I'm getting rather tired." He spoke deliberately.

The crewmen were still wandering the room, casually looking over various toiletry items, and I got mad. This wasn't just about Malcolm. There were reasons why I wanted to wait. Good reasons, although I couldn't think of a damn one at the moment. But we were both frustrated and horny, and I wasn't going to let Lieutenant Leave-in-a-Huff get away with this. I went out into the corridor after him. He was halfway to the lift. I ran to catch up with him, then walked beside him.

At first he didn't acknowledge my presence, just stared straight ahead. Then finally he looked at me with those icy blue eyes and spat out, "Sir?"

I wasn't going to take any of that crap. And I certainly didn't want to have our little discussion in the corridor. Our private life was public enough already. So I grabbed his arm and dragged him, protesting, into a nearby restroom.

I was still naive enough about Malcolm to think we were just going to talk.

"Trip, stop it, damn youâ€”" Malcolm growled as he struggled to free his arm.

I shut the door and pushed him up against the wall right next to it, my hand flat against his chest. "Now you listen to me. I don't need you goin' stompin' off in a huff. I'm just as frustrated and pissed off as you. But that ain't no excuse for you bein' rude. You know I just want to do it right. No quick gropes in a stockroom, because you deserve better than that. When we make love again we're going to be naked, we're gonna take our time and do it right, and we're gonna go be slow and hot and romanticâ€”mmmph."

Malcolm's tongue plunged into my mouth, cutting off my flow of words. And I kissed him right back, in a damn bathroom this time. I couldn't stop. I couldn't think anymore, couldn't remember anything about promises I had made. Everything I had just said flew out of my head as I sucked on his tongue just like I wanted to suck on his cock. All the while, he made these incredible noises while grabbing at me and shoving his body up against mine, fingers digging into my hips. "Quiet dignity," my ass. He was hot and dirty and rough, and I loved it.

He unzipped his coverall and I pushed it off his shoulders. I looked down to see him reaching inside his coverall and taking his own cock into his hands. "Trip," he gasped, leaned back against the door, "I have toâ€”I need toâ€”"

His cock was swollen and red and as beautiful as I remembered. I went down on my knees before him, wondering when the hell I had lost control of the situation. As if I ever had any control over it in the first place.

His cock was hot and delicious, satin and steel against my tongue. I sucked him, I swiped my tongue over the tip, rubbing across the slit, tasting him. I could hear him moaning as I pulled back and licked his shaft, ran my teeth along it, then sucked him in again and again. I couldn't get enough of him. I felt the blood rushing through, the head swelling even larger in my mouth as Malcolm shook and desperately moaned my name, his voice deep and hoarse. His hips bucked, and with one hand digging into his hip, I encouraged him to fuck my mouth, and with the other I fumbled with my own zipper, reaching for my own throbbing erection. His body started to shake and when he seized up and went silent, I sucked hard and he came, still silent, and I swallowed everything he gave me while I jerked myself off.

I came so fast and hard that everything faded out around me.

When I opened my eyes again, we were both sitting on the floor, my head was resting against Malcolm's heaving chest, and my dripping cock was still clutched in my hand. He had his arms around me, hugging me tightly. And I felt like a million bucks.

"I'm sorry, Trip. I just couldn't stand it anymore," he said into my hair.

I kissed his cheek, then his lips. "Yeah, well, I was right there with you."

He looked sheepish. "I practically assaulted you just as you were saying something so very lovely about taking our time and doing it right."

"And I meant that. No foolin' around until we finish out our sentence," I told him, nudging his nose with mine.

I was rewarded with a little laugh, and then we heard voices in the hall, reminding us that we were in a public place. Or at least a semipublic place. We stood, unsteady and silent, and made our way to the sinks as we tucked and zipped and made ourselves decent again. I was walking on air, even though I was shaken by how overcome I had been by my own need for Malcolm. And I knew then what Malcolm meant back on the planet, when he told me I made his common sense vanish. Seems like he did the same for me. We made a hell of a pair.

Our eyes met in the mirror and saw Malcolm watching me with such warmth and affection in his eyes that I didn't care if I ever found my common sense again.  
***

Even though I chastised myself for losing control in the bathroom with Malcolm, I had to admit it made the last three days easier to take. I slept soundly each night. We had finished revamping the tactical alert, and Malcolm was in his glory, running drills for two days straight, until the captain gently pointed out that everything seemed to be in working order, and perhaps there were other projects Malcolm could work on?

And then the two weeks were up. We met up at my quarters as soon as we were off duty.

The door shut behind him and we stared at each other. The moment had finally come. My heart was racing, and I could barely breathe, as if all the air had been vented from the room.

"Finally," Malcolm said, arms folded across his chest.

"Finally." I nodded, then admitted, "Feeling a little nervous now. Ain't that stupid?"

Malcolm laughed a little, looking sheepish. "No. So am I."

"I mean, after all we've doneâ€”what ifâ€”you knowâ€”" I stammered. A magical, romantic tryst in a temple, a heart-stopping quickie in the bathroomâ€”I was starting to feel the pressure.

"What if what?" Malcolm asked, uncrossing his arms. He didn't seem to know what to with his hands.

"Well," I said, hesitating. Finally I continued, "I want this to be good. Real good."

"Trip," he said, laughing a little in disbelief. "This isn't going to be perfect. But it's us, and that's all it needs to be."

"Yeah?" I asked, "you think so?"

"Let me say this. I'd rather have clumsy, awkward sex with you than be swept off my feet and seduced by anyone else."

I scratched my head, frowning. "Was that a compliment?"

"Yes, it was. And you may kiss me, now," he said, answering my question from long ago.

I realized he didn't want or expect anything magical. He just wanted me. Like I wanted him. I felt a weight lifted from my shoulders. I was unburdened, and I was completely besotted. I gazed at the man before me, wondering how many other beautiful aspects of Malcolm were hidden in that neat little package.

So I kissed him. It was nothing like our first fumbling kiss. Or maybe it was just like it, because it felt new and exciting, full of promises. Malcolm made sure I was thoroughly kissed, his tongue on my lips and then into my mouth. I let him taste me and then I was in his mouth. Things heated up, and the awkwardness I had felt earlier vanished. My hands went into his hair, and he clung to my neck.

"Mmm. I have an idea," I said as I trailed wet kisses along his fine cheekbone. "Let's get naked." Back on that planet, his naked body had looked good as the novices led him to the pool to be washed. I had wished I could touch him.

Malcolm stepped away from me. "Naked," he said, as if he could taste the word. He unzipped his coverall.

"Naked," I answered. "We can do that now, you know."

We shed our uniforms, watching each other as we did. Malcolm undressed quickly and gracefully. I loved watching him move. I managed not to lose my balance and soon enough there was a pile of discarded clothes on the floor and we were naked in front of each otherâ€”naked and aroused. We moved closer and I could feel the heat coming off his body. He was so beautiful, all lean muscle and power, and I couldn't take my eyes off his cock.

He wasn't shy and I knew better now. I no longer expected him to be. He looked me in the eye and then his eyes swept downward, looking me over.

"You're lovely, do you know that?" he asked, as he put his hands on my shoulders. "Absolutely lovely." He stroked my chest, spreading his fingers, pushing his palms against me.

"You sweet-talker, you." I put my arms around him and hugged him close. He moaned into my neck as our bodies touched. I could feel a damp spot where his cock pressed against my thigh. His body was hot and alive and rubbing against mine, all that skin touching me.

He sucked on my earlobe, and said, "I plan on getting fucked tonight. You'll do that for me, won't you?" His voice was smooth and silky, like a shot of fine whiskey.

As if I could refuse him anything. "I think you know the answer to that one, darlin'. I smiled at him and he tugged me toward the bed.

We tumbled onto the blankets. Malcolm pushed me flat, kissing and licking me within an inch of my life. I stretched luxuriously as his mouth traveled everywhereâ€”my neck, my shoulders, my hips. I was in heaven. "I still feel like someone's going to come in and stop us," Malcolm admitted as he licked my navel. "Perhaps Hoshi will come in for some shampoo. Or Lieutenant Hess will ask for some massage oil."

"Ugh," I grunted. It was the best I could do as Malcolm fondled my balls and nibbled on my thigh. I propped myself on my elbows and watched him, my mouth open as I tried to breathe as he contemplated my twitching cock for a moment, then ran his lips along the length of it before taking it into his mouth.

I watched my dick slide into Malcolm's mouth, and it was a sight to behold. He sucked on it, pulled some more of it into his mouth, and then released it, wrapping his long fingers around it. He licked the head, making me twitch and buck with pleasure.

"You make this look easier than it is." Malcolm's voice floated through my dazed arousal.

"Yeah," I grunted, licking my dry lips, "That's meâ€”natural-born cocksucker."

He snorted, squeezed me, and I had to sit up. I reached for his arms, pulling him up with me.

"Trip," he protested, "I want toâ€”"

"Yeah, and I'm about to," I told him.

"Oh." He kissed me, crawling into my lap, straddling my legs. I pulled his legs around me, until he clasped them around my waist, his heels pressing against the small of my back, his weight on my thighs. "There now," I said against his mouth. His heat surrounded me. Our cocks bumped happily together as I caressed his ass.

"This is good," he groaned, pushing his cock against me.

"Mmm. You're good." I was riding that sweet wave of arousal, not desperate like in the bathroom, just high and happy and feeling fucking good.

"Now who'sâ€”ohâ€”who's the sweet talkerâ€”" Malcolm was panting and rubbing against me, so hot and horny and mine.

"Behind meâ€”the oilâ€”" I suggested.

Malcolm pressed his chest against mine as he stretched to get the bottle of massage oil from the bedside table. I took advantage of situation, hugging him hard, crushing his chest against mine.

"Uhâ€”Tripâ€”can't breatheâ€”ribsâ€”"

I loosened my hold reluctantly. "Gimme the stuff," I said.

"Waitâ€”it's not that rose-scented one, is it?" Malcolm asked, holding it out of my reach as he read the label.

It was the unscented stuff, but I snatched it from his hand before he could figure it out. "And if it was?" I asked, flipping the lid open and pouring it onto my other hand, splashing drops onto the bed.

"You would, wouldn't youâ€”" But Malcolm sniffed the air and caught on, grinning.

Then he stopped grinning and his mouth opened as I slid an oiled finger down between his cheeks. I spread my legs apart so that his ass was resting between them, and then rubbed my finger against his opening. He groaned and pushed back against my finger as he rested his head on my shoulder.

I took the bottle and dripped the oil directly onto the small of his back, letting it pour down between his cheeks. I was making a mess, but I also knew that there was no such thing as too much lubricant. I wanted this to be good.

Malcolm sighed with pleasure now, one hand on the back on my neck, as he squirmed in my lap. I dropped the bottle and cupped his cheeks. That gorgeous ass was mine at last. I circled his opening with my fingertip, then breached it, penetrating him easily, sinking my finger in to the knuckle. He was tight and his muscles clenched powerfully as I whispered words of encouragement to him.

"Got you now, darlin', you just relax, this is gonna feel so good," I crooned. Soon he relaxed enough for another finger. I found his lips and kissed him, thrusting my tongue into his mouth as I slid my fingers in and out of his ass. He was into it, rocking in my lap, moaning around my tongue.

"If your fingers feel this good," he sighed, "I'm not sure I'm going to survive the rest." He twisted in my lap, looking behind him, trying to see what I was doing to him. "Mirrors. We need mirrors." He reached behind and touched my slick hand, feeling where my fingers entered him.

"You want to watch it? You want to watch us fuck?" I asked, wondering why I was surprised. "That's so, soâ€”dirty, Malcolm." My cock throbbed. I loved him. I'd line the damn walls and ceiling with mirrors just for him.

His finger joined mine inside of him. "I want to see it. See our bodies joined together." He tightened his legs around my waist, his balls and the wet tip of his cock pressing against my body. He bit my neck.

I spent plenty of time getting him ready, because we didn't have to rush, because I was getting off on his pleasure, because the inside of his body was red hot and silky smooth and I could feel every shudder and quiver of his muscles. I was in no hurry, but the ache in my cock was getting fierce, and at last I removed my fingers and encouraged him to lie down, on his stomach.

"Let's keep this simple," I explained to him, getting myself slicked up. I didn't have a whole lot of working brain cells left at that point.

I got between his legs and stretched above him, propping myself up on one elbow. My cock settled between his checks, and I rubbed against him.

"Please," he said.

"Hold your horses," I murmured as I grabbed hold of my oiled cock, lining it up against his hole. When I pushed against it he tensed up only a little. "Let me in, darlin'," I told him. "Just relax and let me in."

He took a deep breath and let it out slowly, and then I was gliding into him, nice and easy. It was a snug fit and I was afraid of hurting him, but he didn't tense up again. He just clutched the pillow and then turned his head to the side. I could see the dark shadow of his lashes move as he closed his eyes, the play of muscles in his face as he smiled, then bit his lip.

"Oh, Trip," he sighed.

And I knew it was all right. I eased further into him, hanging my head down and watching until I came to rest against his ass, my balls brushing against his furred sacs. His breath hitched and he moaned my name again, and I watched his back arch beneath me. He had a beautiful back, with long, lean muscles, defined shoulder blades moving under his skin, his graceful neck. The more I looked at him the more beautiful he was, every detail like the dark curls against his neck and the curve of his jaw astonished me. I kissed wherever I couldâ€”his neck, his shoulders, his cheek, before laying flat on top of him, running my hands along the length of his arms, my hands coming to rest in his.

"This okay for you?" I asked, suddenly worried because he was so quiet.

"Oh, yes," he breathed.

"Feel comfortable?"

"Feels incredible."

His fingers intertwined with mine, and then he asked, "How does it feel to you?"

"Feels like ice cream on a hot summer day." I ran my tongue along the edge his ear. "Feels like going to warp five for the first time."

He laughed a little at that but it did bother me at all, because he sounded so happy. And because I could feel his laughter with my body, pressed hard against his.

"Well, don't worry, darlin', we're not gonna hit warp five now." I rubbed my face against his neck. "We're takin' it nice and slow." I liked that I was taller than him. I was able to cover his body from top to bottom. My feet pressed against the soles of his, my knees rested against his inner thighs, my hips on his ass, my chest on his back, my arms on top of his. His hands were in mine. My cock penetrated him, pinning him to the bed. Lying on top of him like this, I felt every breath he took, felt every muscle tense and relax as he rocked his ass back against me.

"Are you going to move at all?" he asked, sounding amused and more than a little breathless.

"When I feel like it, smartass," I answered. "That's what being the top is all about."

He clenched his muscles around my cock and I involuntarily thrust deeper into his body. I wasn't kidding anyone. Malcolm was calling the shots, and I loved it. I pushed into him again. I loved the whimper that followed. I loved that I could do this to him, that he would let me fuck him, that he would trust me so much.

We moved slow and easy, just our hips, in counterrhythm, tensing and releasing. We let the pleasure build gradually because we had all the time in the world. Because being inside of Malcolm was like nothing I had ever experienced. Because I couldn't get enough of the way he was whimpering.

"This better than some damn toy?" I eventually asked him.

"Mmmm."

We were beginning to sweat, the smooth skin of his back growing moist against my chest, the oil making us slick.

"Can't hear you." That feeling was coiling up from my groin, sharp and sweet, and I knew I wouldn't last much longer.

"What didâ€”what did youâ€”ohâ€”ask?"

Just hearing that control slipping away inflamed me. "I said," thrusting harder, "is my cock better than your toys?"

"Oh, yes. Your cock is amazing. It's bleedin' wonderful. Iâ€”Iâ€”"

He breathing was ragged, words catching in his throat, and it was the most beautiful thing I ever heard. "Lift up a little, hereâ€”" I wedged my hand under him and he cried out when my hand touched his cock. "I've got you, baby." I nudged his legs with my knees and he spread them further apart for me, offering himself to me completely.

That set me off. I just lost my head. I plunged my dick into him over and over, pumping his cock frantically. He jerked beneath me and my hand grew wet. His cry of pleasure sounded as if it came from a great distance. Everything inside me just broke apart and I came, shoving deep inside him as the waves swept through me.

I came down gradually, aftershocks still shaking my body, my cock pulsing inside of Malcolm. I licked his sweat-slicked back, and he clenched his muscles around me, chuckling when I twitched and groaned. So I bit him and gave his softening penis a little squeeze of my own.

He wiggled out from under me, laughing. We lay facing each other, nose to nose. Then we were kissing. We didn't say anything. I guess that we had done enough talking already. I was happy and content and deliriously in love. I think he was, too. We got tangled up in each other, sticky in some places, slick in others, and kissed until we fell asleep.

We woke up a few hours later to the sound of a tactical alert. Startled, we sat up and stared at each other, blinking stupidly.

"This isn't some god damned drill, is it, Malcolm?" I asked.

He shook his head and got up, heading for the pile of discarded clothing.

As we dressed hurriedly, I couldn't help but grin. "This didn't have anything to do with us fucking, you think?" I joked.

"I knew you were nothing but trouble," Malcolm told me, but he was smiling too.

So we left together, heading to the bridge, ready to handle whatever it was that the universe decided to throw at us this time.


	3. Chapter 3. Reflections

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Utterly pointless PWP.

  
Author's notes: Utterly pointless PWP.  
Sequel to: "Stewing," but it also stands alone.  


* * *

Malcolm yawned and stretched. His body ached, in a satisfied manner. Looking up, he saw a naked, disheveled man gazing bemusedly back down at him. Malcolm smiled. The dark-haired man smiled back at him. Next to the smiling man was another man, sprawled on his back, sleeping peacefully, chest rising and falling in a soothing, hypnotic rhythm.

Such a pity to wake him, Malcolm thought. But then he nuzzled Trip's shoulder, breathing in the scent of his skin. "Awake, love?" Malcolm asked softly, even though it was obvious the man was not.

"Mmmph," came the muttered reply.

"Darling? Sweetheart?" Malcolm kissed Trip's arm, his lips teasing the golden skin. Looking across the room now, gazing at the wall, he saw himself propped up on an elbow, as he leaned over his lover's reclined body. Trip was just as lovely from this perspective, he thought, what with the way the man was lying there, the incredibly soft, cream-colored sheet draped partially over his body, his chest and shoulders exposed, one arm flung over his head. Malcolm was certain he'd be beautiful from every point of view.

But far too covered up. Malcolm drew the sheet away, slowly unveiling Trip's body. He admired the reflection in the ceiling as first Trip's stomach, then slender hips became visible. Malcolm could make out the faint outlines of Trip's ribs, just under the taut skin. His eyes followed the slope from his ribs to the flatness of his belly, marked by the dark smudge of hair running down the center. Flat belly, slender waist; but Malcolm knew of the strength there, could feel iron-hard muscle against his thighs when he wrapped his legs around Trip's waist. And below that waist, to either side were the shadowed hollows, where the skin dipped in just before his hipbones. The space where Malcolm's fingers fit so perfectly. Another gentle tug on the sheet and the line of hair led to the dark patch of curls between Trip's legs, where Malcolm could see Trip's soft, quiescent penis, nestled against his sacs.

Malcolm was constantly fascinated by Trip's body, by all that hair, by all those planes and angles. All hard muscle and bone, so unlike any of his previous lovers. A term, which in Malcolm's past, had been reserved solely for women.

Trip stirred. "Malcolm," he complained, shifting, hand grasping aimlessly for the removed covering. Then the man sighed and was quiet again.

Undeterred, Malcolm removed the sheet entirely, off those lean thighs covered with golden fur, knobby knees, sharp shins, and broad sturdy feet. He gazed up at the ceiling again, taking in Trip's nude body, his own pale form curled next to him.

"Trip?" he whispered, pressing his lips to his lover's chest, just below a nipple. He liked the brush of Trip's chest hair against his nose, he thought, as he placed gentle kisses along the nicely sculpted muscle. Then he kissed a dark nipple. Trip grunted, shifted again. Malcolm touched the soft, relaxed nipple with his tongue, tasting the salt and sweat, sweat from their most recent bout of lovemaking. His mouth drifted, kissing the skin beside it, his lips skimming along the flatness. No soft, fleshy curve of breast here, he thought. Just hard, flat muscle. And hair. Malcolm's skin recalled the sensation of having that flat chest pressed against his own back, the feeling of hair and muscle crushed against his skin as Trip panted wildly in his ear.

He continued kissing Trip's chest, following the line of hair down the center. Trip breathed in sharply, his chest rising and falling. He was quiet again when Malcolm reached his navel. Malcolm licked all around it, silky skin against his tongue, solid muscle lying directly underneath. Solid, twitching muscle, Malcolm noted. Pleased, he dipped his tongue into the hollow navel, and was rewarded with an erotic, sleepy moan of pleasure.

Malcolm was determined to discover what pleased his partner the most. It was a challenge. Trip responded to everything he did with boundless enthusiasm. It didn't seem to matter where or how Malcolm touched him, whether he was gentle and tender, or rough and hungryâ€”Trip would just gasp with delight and respond in kind. And when it came to sex itself, to getting off, it didn't seem to matter if Malcolm used his hands or his mouth. Whether he penetrated Trip or offered his own ass up to be penetrated. Each approach produced spectacular results. Malcolm had begun to wonder if there was anything Trip didn't like.

Malcolm swirled his tongue over Trip's navel again, and Trip moved his hips, stomach muscles rolling. More kisses, and then Malcolm was sliding his tongue over a hipbone, then further down, to the crease of Trip's thigh. Trip let out a soft, wordless cry. Malcolm raised his head, glancing over at their reflection on the mirrored wall, meeting Trip's heavy-lidded eyes. Trip had awakened, at least partially, and had been watching.

Trip licked his lips. "Malcolm," he said, his voice thick with sleep.

One last kiss to Trip's thigh and Malcolm moved up to stretched out alongside Trip's body. "What?" Malcolm asked innocently, kissing his lover's cheek. "See, you're awake."

Trip merely shook his head, closing his eyes. "Nope."

"Come on, love," Malcolm said encouragingly, nudging Trip's face with his nose. "One more time."

Trip only groaned and rolled onto his stomach.

"I'll take that as an invitation," Malcolm purred, cupping Trip's ass, sliding his thumb down the center. Hunger stirred deep within as he gazed at the lovely ass.

Trip groaned again. "It's just kind of weird. Like havin' an audience," Trip said into the pillow.

"But it's only us." Malcolm continued his caress, his hand gliding lightly to cup Trip's balls, then circling back up first one cheek, then the other, in a slow, mesmerizing stroke. "And we look so bloody good together." He watched the play of muscles as the man stretched languorously, shoulder muscles tensing and rippling, arms flexing as he reached far in front of his head.

"You're killin' me here, darlin'," Trip moaned. "Just let me sleep a little longer. Or eat. When did we last eat?"

"Hmm?" Malcolm was fingering Trip's sacs, toying with one, then the other, fascinated as Trip spread his legs for him. So vulnerable, so defenseless. "We'll eat later. I promise. They have room service, you know."

Trip asked, "How much later?"

"Later." Malcolm kissed his shoulder, his ear, his cheek. "Much later."

"Mmm." Trip turned his head, his lips seeking Malcolm's.

Malcolm was certain he could still taste his come in Trip's mouth, and the thought made him grow harder. He wriggled up against Trip's body, wanting him, needing him.

"You know, Malcolm, " Trip murmured, "Here we are on this nice planet. Hoshi and T'Pol are visiting that art museum, checking out theâ€”what was itâ€”Aural Exhibit."

"So they are." Malcolm mused, nuzzling Trip's neck, his hand finding its way back to Trip's ass. "You have the most perfect ass I've ever seen, did you know that?" He decided that such a lovely ass deserved to be kissed. Among other things.

Trip continued, "The captain and Travis are out there climbing some mountain. Hess and Rostov are visiting the Museum of Industryâ€”ohâ€”."

Malcolm licked him again, from his balls up through the cleft of his ass, then paused. "Yes, and your point is?" he inquired.

"Point is, uh," Trip seemed to lose track of his point as Malcolm's tongue investigated further, but then recouped and continued. "Point is, we're gonna be all together on the shuttle ridin' back up to Enterprise, and when everyone's sharin' their stories of what they did on shore leave, ahâ€”"

Malcolm's greased index finger disappeared deep inside of his lover. "Do go on," he said, working a second finger into that tight, hot little hole. His own cock ached to be inside.

"I'll have to tell themâ€”oh, goddamn that's goodâ€”I'll gonna be tellin' them," Trip gasped. "You dragged me off to a place with mirrors on the walls and ceilings and with heart-shaped tubs and we spent the entire time fuckâ€”ohâ€”moreâ€”", he finished, his voice breathy.

"Making love?" Malcolm prodded, twisting his fingers.

Trip clutched the sheets, burying his face as he groaned. Then, raising his head, he blurted out, "Makin' love."

Malcolm nodded, pleased that Trip had labeled the act properly. He noticed, too that Trip turned to look at the mirror again, and was watching Malcolm's fingers as they dipped into his ass. Malcolm slid his fingers in deep this time, searching, reaching for that spot in that hot, slick channel. He knew he had found it when Trip jerked and yelped.

"God, Malcolm, please," Trip begged. He turned to Malcolm, grabbing his head, pulling him down and kissing him. Malcolm returned the kiss hungrily, sliding his fingers out of Trip's body, catching Trip's moan of dismay in his mouth.

"Are we ready now?" Malcolm asked. He was. It seemed as though he was constantly ready.

"Oh yeah. Ready. Very ready."

Malcolm crawled into position between Trip's legs. He splashed oil onto his penis, not caring that it ran down his thighs, staining the pale, silky sheets. Trip was tucking his legs under, raising his backside for Malcolm's use. The simple gesture, the offering up for this most intimate act astounded Malcolm each and every time. Malcolm put a hand over his lover's hipbone, fingertips in that little hollow, and with the other hand guided his cock inside of Trip, slipping inside of him, diving in deep, encountering no resistance, no tight muscles, just intense, slick heat.

Trip twisted around, watching Malcolm in the mirror, watching as Malcolm penetrated him. "Damn," he gasped. "Ain't that something."

Malcolm watched, too, watched as his dick disappeared between the lovely rounded cheeks. Into Trip's body. A man's body. Amazing to think that such a strong, powerful man would let Malcolm push his dick up his ass. He could see Trip's muscles flex and roll beneath his skin as Malcolm invaded him, becoming part of Trip's body.

He sat back, arms around Trip's waist, until Trip was in his lap. "Look," he said, gently tilting Trip's head up, kissing his neck. "Look at how beautiful we are together." He gazed up at the ceiling, seeing their bodies clinging together, seeing Trip's head resting on his shoulder, sleepy blue eyes watching both of them.

"It's just kind of strange," Trip said, but he still watched, rubbing his cheek against Malcolm's. "I didn't know I look like thatâ€”soâ€”I don't knowâ€”"

"Incredibly sexy?" Malcolm finished for him.

"I was going to say 'hairy'."

Malcolm nodded. "Sexy."

"If you say so." He closed his eyes, leaning his head against Malcolm's. "Mmm. This is nice." He leaned back, relaxing against Malcolm.

"So what are we going to say when asked what we did during our 48 hours of leave?" Malcolm inquired, wrapping his arms around Trip, hugging him close, feeling the delicious heat and pressure on his dick.

"Mmm, how 'bout that we watched ourselves screw each other silly?"

"Oh? Speak for yourself, I am not, and never will be, silly," Malcolm pointed out. "You, on the other handâ€”ahâ€”" he gasped as Trip tightened his muscles in response. "All right then," Malcolm gasped. He leaned forward, maneuvering Trip into position in front of him.

Trip chuckled, a rich, throaty sound as he went down on his knees, then shoved his ass back against Malcolm. Malcolm thrust into him, shifting around on his knees to find just the right position.

Then Malcolm watched. Watched in the mirror as his glistening cock slowly disappeared into Trip's ass, then drew out again. Watched, fascinated, as his body flowed forward and back with one smooth fluid motion. Good lord, they looked splendid together, Trip's head hanging down, back arched, body rocking counter to Malcolm's. Malcolm placed his hands on those slender, strong hips, splaying his fingers, holding on tight. It was all they were, the glide of his cock, sheathed in his lover, the sheer pleasure of it all growing deep inside of him, making his balls ache, his gut twist.

So he watched, but after a while Malcolm realized it wasn't enough, something was missing. He couldn't see Trip's face. Malcolm needed to see it, needed to watch that expressive face as Malcolm loved him.

"Trip, loveâ€”" he breathed, patting Trip's back. "Turn overâ€”"

"Huh?"

Malcolm pulled back, out of Trip's body, and grabbed a nearby pillow. "Come on, now, on your back," he instructed.

Trip gazed at him, befuddled. "I was just gettin' into it," he complained. But turned over, sighing as he lifted his ass for Malcolm to slide a pillow beneath.

Malcolm fumbled with his own dick as Trip's legs wound around his waist. Malcolm pushed against the warm, slick flesh, finding Trip's anus, open and inviting. "Yes," he sighed as the warm, wet flesh engulfed him. Trip's legs clamped around him tightly, and he was trapped, wonderfully trapped.

Hooking his arms under Trip's knees, Malcolm tilted his head back, gazing up and groaning at the sight. The two of them, joined at the hip, literally. Trip's eyes were closed, a blissful expression on his face, his head resting in the crook of one arm, a hand cradling his own cock, not stroking or squeezingâ€”just holding it. And below that, in the midst of a wild fuzz of hair, Malcolm could see the only base of his own cock, the rest of it hidden deep in Trip's body.

"Oh," he sighed, watching himself as he spoke, his mouth opening and closing. So beautiful. So much flesh, so much skin. He rolled his hips away from Trip, seeing his cock emerge, slowly, centimeter by centimeter, stopping only when the head of it was caught by the ring of muscle. Trip squirmed, his fingers tightening on his cock, a soft whimper escaping from his lips.

Malcolm waited, trembling, before sinking deep inside once again. "Oh darlin'," Trip breathed, eyes still closed, mouth curving into a sweet smile.

And Malcolm was lost. Lost in that smile, that whispered endearment. Despite the mirrors, despite the bird's eye view of their naked, joined bodies, it was that face that excited Malcolm the most. Seeing Trip's pleasure reflected so brilliantly, the pleasure that Malcolm gave him, whether it was by touching him, by sucking on him, by penetrating him, whether he was rough and hungry, whether he moved lazy and slow.

And right now it was lazy, it was slow, an easy glide in and out of Trip's body, giving a little push at the deepest point, just so he could hear that small gasp each time. Trip's legs gradually went slack around him, oozing down, Malcolm releasing his grip as they splayed out.

He never took his eyes off of Trip's face, watching as Trip grimaced slightly, biting his lower lip, brows coming together, then relaxing. Eyes opening, catching Malcolm, drawing him. Mouth opening, lips moving. "Slower," Trip whispered.

Malcolm obeyed, moving with agonizing slowness, quivering with the strain of it. Heart pounding, drawing out the moment as Trip writhed beneath him. Trip groaned, reached for his own legs, holding them apart, opening wide, displaying admirable flexibility. Malcolm moved slower still. He buried himself as deeply as possible, balls deep, his body up against Trip's. With a grinding, corkscrew motion he slowly circled his hips, watching Trip pant, mouth hanging open now, eyes wide.

"That's it, love," he whispered. He wanted to see if he could do it, make Trip come without touching his cock, by just touching him on the inside.

"Malcolmâ€”Malcolmâ€”holy shitâ€”" Sweat running down his face now, body tensing, muscles standing out in sharp cords on his neck. "I'mâ€”I'mâ€”"

Malcolm held tight to the sweaty, slick thighs, forcing himself deeper inside Trip, trying to ignore the fierce pleasure stabbing through his own body. It was so bloody good. "Yes, oh yes, feel itâ€”"

"Iâ€”I feel it. Oh godâ€”"

Barely a whisper, but Malcolm heard it, then saw it, saw Trip screw his eyes tightly shut, felt it, felt Trip's body shake, then convulse powerfully sharply as Trip climaxed. Malcolm caught a glimpse of the marvelous sight of Trip's cock erupting over Trip's stomach, striping it with come, and then Malcolm's control slipped away, the exquisite sensations swallowing him up, and he came, hard, pumping his seed into Trip's body in long, hard spurts.

When it was all over Malcolm slumped down on top of Trip, legs aching, cock throbbing, head spinning. It was good, so good. Maybe the best yet, he thought.

After a time, Trip spoke. "Damn," he said, sounding somewhat dazed. "You're gettin' good at this, darlin'. Real good."

Malcolm found his voice. "Practice," he said, "makes perfect." He rode the wave of laughter from Trip's body, laughing a little himself. He opened his eyes and laughed again when he saw their reflections, the way they had melted together, arms and legs jumbled together as if they were one being. He nestled further into Trip's chest, eyes closing.

"Hey now," Trip growled. "You promised to feed me. An' it's your turn to call room service."

Malcolm roused himself. Food. Drinks. Trip. Bathtub.

He opened his eyes and raised his head. "Trip, loveâ€”I have a splendid ideaâ€”"


End file.
